Photo by Ian Schneider on Unsplash I have two living children. My daughter was born after several years of "unexplained infertility". My son was born four years later, after several years of heartbreaking losses in my first and second trimesters. I remember how confusing that Mother's Day was after he was born. My son was a [...]

Mother's Day can be difficult as a mama who is pregnant after loss. It's a day in which she is reminded of what she does not have. The sight of a newborn cradled in its mother's arms reminds her of the baby she never held. The social media images of mothers with their children remind [...]

The pregnancy after loss journey is...complicated. It is every emotion that you have ever felt and they are all struggling to exist together. You may feel like you are faced with an ever-growing list of things to do and remember. I know how that feels. So, when it all feels too daunting and you doubt [...]

Are you having trouble holding onto hope during this season of pregnancy after loss? Maybe you've experienced complications and are worried that you'll lose another baby. Maybe the days are passing just a little too slowly and the journey towards a full-term pregnancy seems endless. Maybe the trauma from pregnancy loss has led to the [...]

Photo by Keenan Constance on Unsplash The place in time for when a pregnancy after loss occurs differs for each of us. For some, the loss occurred as part of the first pregnancy experience. Others might have had several children before experiencing loss. There can seem to be a lopsidedness in sharing the stories of loss [...]

At 26 weeks I’m starting to become more and more baby-focused as opposed to pregnancy-focused. I spent my first trimester constantly checking for signs that I was indeed pregnant and staying pregnant, taking countless home pregnancy tests between my earliest appointments. I was so excited but afraid to let myself be so excited. Then there [...]

Gender disappointment. It happens, but few of us want to talk about it. Especially those of us in the loss community. "I'll just be happy if your baby is healthy and alive," we say about pregnancy after loss, because we all know the alternative. We may even demand the same from our friends and acquaintances [...]

I am 25 weeks pregnant with my third child. Reading this sentence alone could be unremarkable for some, but it could be loaded for those who are trying to conceive, those who have experienced pregnancy/infant/child loss, or anyone at any point in his or her own parenthood journey for any number of reasons. For me, [...]

Photo by Juja Han on Unsplash What a year it's been at PALS (Pregnancy After Loss Support)! We became a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization this summer and launched the new PALS MeetUps, all while continuing all of our other support services. We look forward to reaching even more Courageous Mamas in 2018! One of the ways we support [...]

Being pregnant during the holiday season comes with its own ups and downs. The highlights might include feeling a little freer to indulge in sweets, sharing the news (in a creative way) with family, or having extra time to take off from the normal stresses of life (and a PAL). However, some of these things [...]